padraig:And experience is something that less and less people are willing to pay a premium for.

At the risk of pedantry, people are always willing to pay a premium for the experience. They are just less and less willing to be pay for that experience, and even less willing to be told what experience they should appreciate.

There was a little restaurant in Phoenix, just a small place in a tiny set of old stores. It regularly placed second behind The Phoenician Resort for wine rating by a Michelin equivalent for French wines, as judged by a team of French guys.

fusillade762:And don't even get him started about the James Beard awards...

Yeah, but he has a point. To my mind, feasting is a social event. You sit around and talk and laugh and enjoy the company of the folks you invited... And you talk about the food and how good it is, and how you're going to eat more tomorrow, and it's a grand old time. Feasting should not be a mere check-off of a restaurant destination. It should be FUN.